Date: 8 Feb 2010 Comments: 1

Millions...Gone in 30 seconds.

Big, Expensive, Bloated, Gaudy Advertising

The New Orleans Saints victory last night in the Super Bowl was a tremendous occasion.  An American city that was 85% under water nearly 5 years ago and left to fend for itself has by no means recovered fully from the wrath of Hurricane Katrina.  But tourists are returning, businesses are re-opening and this football game gave millions of people that have endured hardship a reason to start Mardi Gras celebrations early and keep the party rollicking through the NFL off season.

The game was fun to watch, but the media blitzkrieg that descends on the host city and those very, very expensive 30-second commercials have made Super Bowl week – and the days to follow – seem a bit ridiculous.  It is after all a sporting event.  Yes, millions of people tune in and some simply to watch the commercials!  It is fascinating to watch the Twitter feeds and Facebook updates as everyone plays the role of Brilliant Advertising Executive and states which spots failed, succeeded and what they would have done to ensure a particular ad struck all the right chords with the viewers.

I think the impact on ROI that these ads have is debatable.  Will the GoDaddy.com ads – an embarrassment to the human race – cause a surge in domain purchases?  Will Doritos be filling the shopping carts of consumers for weeks to come because their commercials were so…inspiring?  I doubt it.  People will talk about all these ads for the next several days which might be enough for many of these companies to deem their buys a success.

Stay Small, Build Relationships

Given the economic climate, I can’t help but wonder if the entrepreneurs that are starting from the ground up after they’ve lost their jobs are watching all this hoopla and laughing their asses off.  There is something about staying small in today’s business world.  Something admirable about the CEO that can touch every aspect of their business daily.  The ambition lies not in achieving global recognition, but in creating a tangible conversation with their customers.  And they certainly don’t need to spend millions of dollars to do so.

In fact, I would encourage you – dear readers – to walk into some of your local businesses and observe which ones have “Follow Us on Twitter” or “Join our Facebook Page” signs posted in their windows or at the register.  How much do you think it cost to print those signs out?  How much do you think it cost to create a Facebook page?  Probably less than a half an hour of their time.

The more small business owners I speak with the more amazed I am at what their primary goal is:  They want to make a difference in their customers’ lives.  Sure they want to make a profit and keep their doors open.  But it has become bigger than that to these new CEOs.  To them business is being incredibly aware of the ramifications each decision they make has on their audience.  Nothing – and I mean absolutely nothing – is done without their knowing about it.  They are involved.  They connect with their employees and they get their hands dirty.

Lust for Life

I don’t mean to make a sweeping generalization that CEOs of major firms are detached suits that don’t know the going-ons of their business.  They got to such lofty heights because they are smart, talented and get the most out of their teams.  What I am suggesting is that start up companies are being run by equally smart and business savvy people that realize they don’t have to spend millions on 30-second advertisements.  These small business owners are some of the most enthusiastic and exciting people I’ve met and they are in awe of what social networking and search engines have presented them in terms of business growth.

Their businesses are connecting on an emotional level with their customers.  They breed loyalty.  They compel people to join communities.  It isn’t about getting a mediocre race car driver or former Golden Girl to endorse their product.  It is about being able to positively influence the day-to-day operations of their business because nothing is too small to delegate and no customer is insignificant.